A Meme....

Tagged by Robin, who was tagged via Tish.

First, the covenant:
1. We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.
2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.


1. The first public speaking I did was in kindergarten. We had done some kind of painting and then had to show and tell about it. What made it memorable was although I don't remember the story I told all that well, I do remember it was dark and macabre and it freaked the teacher out. I still remember the look that she gave me - a look so full of disdain and horror that I thought I'd done something really terrible. It took everything I had to get up and speak in front of a crowd for many years after that.

2. When I was about ten years old, like all the other kids I wore plain old white tennis shoes; they were totally flat with no arch supports and as a result I strained my achilles tendon. Of course, I didn't know what it was, but I was limping like crazy. So, I took myself off to the doctor's office, marched up to the nurse/receptionist and asked to be seen. I was puzzled when they asked me where my mom was, but they laughed and said to take a seat when I indignantly informed them I was old enough to bring myself to the doctor. The doc checked me over, told me to wear shoes with some kind of a heel and sent me happily on my way.

3. I was one of the first women to work for my county ambulance service. The guys were so solicitous of me that if a call came in that they considered really rough, they wouldn't let me go on the call. The one in particular I remember is a hanging. The victim was the father of one of my high school classmates. They didn't think I needed to see anything like that. In our down time, I learned to play a mean game of cribbage and learned that a few snorts of O2 could cure a hangover.

4. As an only child I grew up playing with more boys than girls because there were more boys to play with. As a result, I was quite the tomboy. I had to ask Dad to teach me how to throw a baseball like a boy because I got teased so much about "throwing like a girl". And, to this day if someone issues a challenge, I am usually compelled to take them up on it. I still haven't quite forgiven Two Wolves for challenging me to eat okra, though. Bleah.

5. My dad started teaching me to drive when I was 14. So, I was quite a bit ahead of my friends when we came close to that magical age of "driver's license". One summer, my mother asked me to back the car up from the carport so we could start the grill and keep it under cover since it looked rainy that day. She was bragging me up to my girlfriend inside while I was doing this task for her outside. BOOM! I didn't close the car door because I was only going to back the car up about three feet. But, being cocky I hit the gas a bit too hard and slammed the car door into the support post. The door was crunched 'open' and it was right before several days of hard rain.

6. I made a huge pot of potato soup one winter day, using my pressure cooker. It expanded so much the pressure valve blew off coating a good share of the kitchen with boiling potato soup. My other major kitchen goof was one year when I was making apple jelly and the phone rang. I turned around to pick up the phone and didn't turn around immediately. You guessed it...the jelly boiled over and it took quite some time to clean all the sticky goop out from under the stove burners. Thank goodness answering machines were invented.

7. When I was a really little kid, I spent a lot of time around the elderly. One of them tried to force me to eat a fried egg when I was three; I was in her house and she was fixing herself breakfast. It smelled good, so I asked if I could have a bite. She fixed me an egg instead, and sat me down at the table and of course, I didn't want a whole egg - I just wanted a taste. The old bat wouldn't let me leave her house because, damn it, she'd fixed me an egg and I was damn well going to eat it! She made me sit in her house for over two hours until my mother tracked me down. Boy, was Mom pissed! Not at me, but at that old lady. And, 52 years later, I can honestly say that I've never eaten a fried egg since. On the other hand, another old lady in the neighborhood taught me how to embroider at the age of three. Other old ladies in my life before the age of ten taught me how to knit and crochet.

8. The first "dirty" book I ever read was Leon Uris's book Battle Cry. I think I was around 12 or so. The first 'pornographic' book I read was Fanny Hill: Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure. I was 13, and for the life of me, I still don't understand how I sat in the car on a two week vacation with my parents and they let me read the thing.

And, there's my eight things. I'm tagging Tracey, Jude, Flo, Holly, Alia, Torch, and Two Wolves and anyone else who might want to play. It's up to you to play or not as you will!

Edit: I was going to leave a note on everyone's blog, but I only got a couple in before deciding you'd see it when you read my blog...or at least I hope all my tagged people are reading my blog!